JD Souther wrote hits for the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt and a host of other popular groups. (Press Courtesy of Facebook)
I heard it recently, and wondered…what ever happened to the song, ‘You’re Only Lonely’ … the song, the artist, and why did he not record more?
Driving home last weekend I was listening to Sirius XM radio when I heard it…a song that’s as good as any Southern rock ballad ever written, and recorded by only a few pop singers over the years, beginning with a tenor crooner named JD Souther, 45 years ago, when he wrote the song in 1979.
The recording I was listening to wasn’t Souther’s, but rather by former Statler Brother tenor Jimmy Fortune, who’s been performing as a solo act since the Statlers retired in 2023. And if you’re familiar with hearing him as one of the Statlers, you’ve haven’t heard the best of Jimmy Fortune.
Former member of the Statler Brothers Jimmy Fortune can now be heard as a member of Brothers of The Heart.
A fantastic singing and writer talent, Fortune recently formed his own group called Brothers of The Heart, with Bradley Walker, Mike Rogers, and Ben Isaacs. They’ve now recorded three albums together, a mixture of pop, country, and a little gospel, and they are as good as anything you can relax with if you’re into comfortable music.
When written in 1979, it was the title song of Souther’s third album, despite the fact that Souther was known more as a writer than a performer. In fact, many of the songs you know so well by the Eagles, Bonnie Raitt, and Linda Ronstadt have all came from the pen and guitar of JD Souther.
But he had never had a hit of his own, largely because a critic in New York once said that his voice was simply not interesting enough to be acknowledged. That is…until he recorded You’re Only Lonely. If you’re heard it, chances are it was in passing. One of those, “I wonder who did that song?”
Or maybe, “I’d like to hear more of that.”
But it became a major hit in 1979 as radio stations played it to death. It peaked on the Billboard Chart at #7, and later became the #1 song on the adult contemporary chart.
Souther did it right, and did it beautifully, hiring three members of the Eagles to sing backup with him. And despite its popularity, it would be the only hit recording Souther ever did, despite the smash hits he wrote for others.
And yet, he never really received the critical acclaim he deserved for songs he wrote like Best of My Love, and New Kid in Town (for the Eagles). He’s better recognized as a music trivia personality than a song writer by the unenlightened. Souther passed away last fall (September, 2024) after spending 55 years as a songwriter.
When you hear the attached recording with Fortune and Brothers of The Heart you may remember it, and if you don’t remember I’d be shocked if you don’t want to listen to it again, including the original cut by Souther that you can find on YouTube (Columbia Records). Fortune’s voice and his interpretation is remarkably close to that of Souther’s, and I did listen to it more than once, as you might have guessed.
A song from the heart…from Jimmy Fortune and Brothers of The Heart.”
Listen to it all, something so old done so well…as something so new.
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